the capital of the Dutch settlements in Guiana, situated on a river of the same name, in N. Lat. 6° 16' W. Long. 56° 0'. It gives name to the country for 100 miles round; and stands on a river of the same name, which is navigable for 30 leagues up the country. A settlement was formed at Surinam in 1650 by the Dutch, who preferred possession of it ever since. The chief trade consists in sugar, cotton, coffee of an excellent kind, tobacco, flax, skins, and some valuable drugs for dyeing. Four hundred and thirty plantations have been already formed on the banks of the Surinam and the adjacent country, which in 1775 yielded 24,120,000 weight of rough sugar, which were sold in Holland for 347,225 l. Sterling; 15,000,387 lb. weight of coffee, which sold for 357,538 l.; 970,000 lb. weight of cotton; 790,854 lb. weight of cocoa; 152,844 lb. weight of wood for dyeing. The sum total of these productions amounted to 822,925 Sterling, and was brought into the harbours of the republic in 70 vessels. The number of slaves employed in the same year was 60,000, who belonged to 2824 masters, exclusive of the women and children. The white people were of different countries and different religions.

Connected with Surinam, we may mention the colonies of Demerary, Ilequibo, and Berbice, which lie a little to the west. The two first surrendered to the British troops in 1781; but being left defenceless, were retaken by a French frigate. Demerary has lately been taken a second time by the army of Great Britain. It is considered as a valuable acquisition, being a flourishing colony. In 1769 there were established on the banks of the Demerary 130 habitations, in which sugar, coffee, and cotton were successfully cultivated, and since that period the number of plantations hath increased much.

Ilequibo is a very inconsiderable settlement. Berbice, which lies between Demerary and Surinam, contains about 104 plantations, most of them small, and scattered at great distances from one another upon the banks of the Berbice or of Conje. When Raynal published the last edition of his History of Settlements and Trade in the East and West Indies, the population consisted of 7000 slaves of every age and sex, 250 white men, exclusive of the soldiers. The coffee, sugar, and cotton produced was conveyed to Holland in four or five ships, and sold for about 40 or 50,000 l.